25/04/2026
4th Sunday of Easter 2026 - The gate of the sheepfold
Reading today’s gospel from John 10:1-10 brought to mind a question. Have you ever wandered along the fence of a field where sheep are grazing? If the sheep are resting along side the fence, they quickly move out of the way as you come close on the other side of the fence. They then retreat to a safe distance from the stranger and look at you warily. I can imagine Jesus, as he was growing up, wandering up into the hills near his home town to pray. He would have come across sheep in an enclosed field and experienced the same wariness of the sheep as he drew near to them. This would have caused him to reflect upon his calling to attract people to God and how the sheep follow the shepherd but not the stranger. So he would have seen himself as being called to be a shepherd who attracted people to follow him. But there was also the issue of what he was calling them to be. It was a particular way of life. While the way of life included all people – Jew and Greek, slave and free, etc – it demanded a level of trust or belief that was total – love of God and love of neighbour. So it wasn’t just any gate. We renew our baptismal promises every year on the celebration of the the Resurrection because we stand by the promises made upon passing through this gate, the gate of the Lord, the gate of the sheepfold. Should we be wary when someone tries to lure us into passing any fancy gate? Indeed we should. We are not called to be dumb sheep! We should be wary especially in a world we can be easily seduced into all kinds of strange cults or ways of life. While three thousand were added to the number of the early Christians in today’s first reading from Acts 2:14,36-41, one may rightfully wonder how long they remained faithful to their baptismal promises. Then, the second reading from 1 Peter 2:20-25 adds the challenge of bearing suffering for the sake of Jesus. We freely choose to follow Jesus. We choose this gate because it promises life and life to the full.
Tom Rouse
